Is there proof of the existence of Jesus/Yeshua?
Non-Christian sources of ancient documentation which prove the existence of Christ
Cornelius Tacitus was born in the region of northern Italy and lived from 56 AD – 117 AD. He was a senator and an historian of the Roman Empire. Tacitus wrote the 'Annals' in 16 books, but Books 7-10 have not been discovered to date. Fortunately, Tacitus recorded vital information about Christ and Christianity in Book 15, Chapter 44:
“Consequently, to get rid of the report, Nero fastened the guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians by the populace. Christus (Christ), from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty (flogged and nailed to cross) during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus, and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome, where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world find their centre and become popular. Accordingly, an arrest was first made of all who pleaded guilty; then, upon their information, an immense multitude was convicted, not so much of the crime of firing the city (Rome), as of hatred against mankind. Mockery of every sort was added to their deaths. Covered with the skins of beasts, they were torn by dogs and perished, or were nailed to crosses, or were doomed to the flames and burnt, to serve as a nightly illumination, when daylight had expired.”
Tacitus was 11 years old when Apostle Paul was teaching Christianity in the synagogues of Rome (Italy). Paul lived from 5 AD - 67 AD, and he is credited with having written one-third of the scriptures of The New Testament in The Holy Bible. During Paul's ministry, he traveled extensively despite being nearly killed by 'stoning' once and by floggings on five separate occasions, but he was eventually beheaded in Rome to end his ministry.
Titus Flavius Josephus lived from 37 AD – 100 AD. He defected to the Roman Empire and was granted Roman citizenship. As an historian, Josephus recorded 'Machaerus' as the place where John The Baptist was imprisoned before John was beheaded. None of the scriptures of The New Testament state the location where John The Baptist was imprisoned (although the scriptures concur John was beheaded).
Josephus authored 'Antiquities of the Jews', in which Book 20 stated, “Festus was now dead, and Albinus was put upon the road; so he assembled the sanhedrim of judges, and brought before them the brother of Jesus, who was called Christ, whose name was James, and some of his companions; and when he had formed an accusation against them as breakers of the law, he delivered them to be stoned...”
Christian sources of ancient documentation which prove the existence of Christ
Barnabas – The 'Epistle of Barnabas' contains twenty-one chapters, which are recorded in the Codex Sinaiticus. Apostle Paul referred to Barnabas as 'apostle Barnabas' in Acts 14:14, and as the cousin of Mark the Evangelist in Colossians 4:10. Barnabas and Paul traveled together during their Christian ministry, and Barnabas is known as the founder of the Cypriot Orthodox Church. Barnabas was martyred in Salamis, Cyprus, in approximately 61 AD, and Paul was later executed in Rome, Italy, in 67 AD.
New Testament Scriptures - Ancient documentation has proven both the existence of people identified, and events described, in the scriptures of The New Testament. Therefore, it is extremely doubtful that several authors had collaborated with each other to similarly invent letters to churches and books about the involvement of real people in imaginary events, whose religious claims would have made the authors guilty of blasphemy and resulted in their being 'stoned' to death; instead, it's highly likely that several people wrote letters to churches as part of their new ministries and documented their experiences in real life events. Similarly, either all the people described in the scriptures of the New Testament were in collaboration with each other to fabricate and establish a lie, which would result in their executions; or, all the people were telling the truth about their experiences and The Messiah.
According to John 21:25 (NIV), “Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written.”
Prophecies - There are over 1,000 prophecies in the scriptures of The Old Testament in The Holy Bible which pertain to Jesus/Yeshua, and all of those prophecies were fulfilled by Him, according to the scriptures of The New Testament. The odds that a human could fulfill all of those prophecies is beyond possibilities, but nothing is impossible with God.
After approximately 2,000 years, the Jewish people returned to their homeland, reclaiming Israel in 1948, as predicted in the prophecies of The Holy Bible. Years later, the Jewish people reclaimed Jerusalem in 1967, as predicted in the prophecies.
There are also Biblical prophecies that predict events of the period when The Messiah will return to earth for a second time. Most of those prophecies about future events have already been fulfilled, and only a few remain pending, which are in the process of being fulfilled right now.
Testimonies
If a Christian is baptized in the name of The Father, and The Son, and The Holy Spirit, the Christian's body becomes a temple of God and receives the indwelling Holy Spirit. The scripture, Ezekiel 36:27 (NIV) states, “And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.” This person becomes 'Born Again' into a true Christian. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here” (2 Corinthians 5:17 (NIV))!
Saul of Tarsus, also known as Apostle Paul, lived from 5AD – 67 AD. According to his own admission and actions, he persecuted Christians in Jerusalem. However, while traveling to Damascus, the resurrected Jesus/Yeshua appeared to him, blinded him, and then gave him instructions on how to restore his sight in three days. Apostle Paul became a Christian who is credited with writing one-third of The New Testament.
Roman Emperor Constantine lived from 272 AD – 337 AD. In 312 AD, at the 'Battle of the Milvian Bridge', Constantine looked into the sky and saw a cross with the words 'in this sign you will conquer' (translated). Constantine ordered his soldiers to add the cross to their shields, after which they were victorious. In 313 AD, Constantine issued the 'Edict of Milan' which decriminalized Christianity. In 331 AD, Constantine commissioned the creation of fifty Bibles, which are the earliest Christian Bibles in existence today.
In modern times, there are a multitude of records available describing encounters with Jesus/Yeshua because we have so many tools with which to record them. Testimonies can be easily viewed on the internet through sites such as YouTube, and on the television through shows such as 'It's Supernatural'. Testimonies available include encounters with Jesus/Yeshua and healing miracles, guardian angels and life-savings, The Holy Spirit indwelling, conversions, and many, many other miraculous blessings.
Jesus/Yeshua The Messiah
Either Jesus/Yeshua was an extraordinarily talented liar, who knew he must fulfill all the Biblical prophecies, living a sinless lifestyle, outsmarting all the teachers of the law, enduring the hatred of many people, healing with miracles, raising the dead to life, convincing twelve apostles to collaborate with his lie for no financial gain, refusing marriage, predicting future events, avoiding being stoned to death for blasphemy, then willingly submitting to being flogged and crucified to death at an early age of life for no financial gain; or, He was truly The Son of God. Later, The Messiah would also have to resurrect from death to life, and then convince His apostles to teach Christianity throughout the lands while being persecuted and punished until their ministries resulted in their executions.
List of the most important questions with answers and information about YaH (God), Yehoshua (Jesus 'The Christ"), The Holy Spirit and The Holy Bible.
The Holy Bible chapter and verse references of the scriptures and gospels are quotes from:
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